This invention relates to air cargo carriers, and more particularly a carrier that may be erected on standard pallets for carrying as many as four automobiles on two pallets, where the automobiles may be any combination of different makes and models with only limitations as to total width and total weight, and length of each automobile.
It is common practice to load air cargo onto 96 inch .times. 125 inch IATA-type pallets which have the continuous "seat track" type of attachments on all four sides for securing cargo, with one pallet lengthwise on each side of the center line of the aircraft. It would be desirable to load small automobiles in two tiers onto pallets for shipment by air cargo, but 125 inches is not sufficient length for even the small European automobiles. It would be necessary to lock two pallets together and stow the automobiles transversely. Two pallets would yield a length of 192 inches plus the space of about four inches between the pallets necessitated by the centerline locks. This allows a useable base width of 125 inches for two automobiles side by side, including at least 1.5 inches of space between automobiles. Allowing for a 1.5 inch overhang, maximum total width for the lower pair of autos is 128 inches limited by the loading equipment required to handle two pallets simultaneously. The aircraft side loading door is 134 inches wide and the maximum width of the upper pair of autos should not exceed 132 inches as controlled by the adjustments. Another practical limit is the total height of two automobiles loaded on the carrier. Other practical requirements are that the carrier be capable of being dismantled so that the parts of several units may be easily stacked on one pallet for shipment back to the starting point. The high density packaging permitted by the "knockdown" design maximizes the space available for revenue freight on the back haul, or return trip.